Biomechanical modelling of the temporomandibular joint forces influence on the internal carotid artery

Currently, cardiovascular diseases in many cases can cause premature death (up to 40 % of deaths). In the literature, there are observations about the effect of the temporomandibular joint dysfunction on the state of the cervical portion of the internal carotid artery. Under the influence of the load in the joint, bends and, possibly, looping are formed in the artery, which lead to a decrease in the volume of cerebral circulation and the development of a stroke. To date, there is no strict description of the maxillofacial influence in general and the temporomandibular joint in particular on the brain nutrition, which for the most part goes through the internal carotid artery (up to 80 % of the total blood volume). For the quantitative assessment of the loads influence on blood flow, the model example is considered, and it is shown the 34 % decrease in the carotid artery opening due to forces in the temporomandibular joint. To confirm the hypothesis and explain the action of the effect of loads, it is necessary to develop the biomechanical model of the internal carotid artery and the temporomandibular joint interaction. This study is complicated by the variability of the living structures characteristics from person to person. In the article, it is provided the detailed description of this problem, proposed the formulation of the loading coupled problem on the branch of the carotid artery by forces in the joint and blood flow in this part of the artery and the algorithm for solving this problem through averaging and simpifying the model. The iterative procedure for interaction in the elasticity theory problems and the averaged blood flow problem are presented.